All Wet
by Rurouni Tyriel
Summary: (COMPLETED) When Beastboy wins a game with Raven, he manages to convince her to taking a trip to the beach with him in an attempt to let her have fun and be normal. Naturally, things don’t go quite as he’d oh-so-masterfully planned.
1. I

**Disclaimer:**

I don't own the Teen Titans, though I wish I did. Or maybe just a pair of hot Tamaranian Princesses. Yum-yum.

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**Summary:**

When Beastboy wins a game with Raven, he manages to convince her to taking a trip to the beach with him in an attempt to let her have fun and be normal. Not Raven's strong points. Consequently, things don't go quite as he'd oh-so-masterfully planned. First there was the arrival of his arch-rival Aqualad, whom Raven seems smitten with, which was bad enough. But that, unfortunately, was the good news. Takes place some time after the events of 'Titans East,' and prior to 'Don't Touch that Dial.' Rated PG-13 just to be on the safe side, for action violence and some sappy moments.

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"Rook takes Knight," remarked the near-monotone Raven, sliding her piece along the board to its current position, removing Beastboy's white knight and placing it beside the chessboard with the small collection she'd already collected. Including a number of Pawns, a Rook, a Knight, and even one of Beastboy's Bishops. His defenses were vastly dwindling before, what he'd decided to nickname 'the black scourge.'

They were playing chess. Beastboy was losing.

Why? Therein lies a tale.

Raven had been in her room, doing what she usually did in her room. Reading a very good, unnaturally thick book with so many long words that most readers at Titan's Tower would've need a second book, a dictionary, just to get past chapter one. Beastboy would've been lucky had he gotten past the first paragraph. And she'd been in her room reading the book since she'd awoken that morning. Beastboy had taken it upon himself to form a one-man rescue mission to save her from the darkness of her room and had, with a surprisingly bright idea. Challenging Raven to a game. Not a competition of stankball or anything like that, of course. A game of chess. One of the few games the sullen and overly serious Raven actually enjoyed, even though she wasn't terribly good at it.

One hour and twenty-five minutes later we rejoin Beastboy and Raven (white and black, respectively) as Beastboy ponders his latest move, scratching his head, rubbing his chin, and being overly dramatic in his thinking as he prepares to make a move. Raven simply continues to watch the board, already thinking of her next move based on how Beastboy acts.

The other Titans were wandering about the room in a variety of other tasks. Starfire was cooking some homemade Tamaranian stew (cheerfully throwing in a number of items that would have been lethal to humans), Robin and Cyborg were playing the combat game they enjoyed so much. None of them paid more than cursory interest in Raven and Beastboy's game.

"Uhmmmmm... hmmmm... Queen uh..." Beastboy muttered, starting to move his piece forward... but stopped. Raven was watching him. He quickly slid it back into place, thus canceling his move. He hadn't taken his hand off the Queen just yet. "Uhh..."

"Sometime this millennia, if possible," said Raven sarcastically. "I'd really like to win and head back to my room."

"You sound pretty sure you're going to win," remarked Beastboy, grinning playfully, forgetting for the moment he was, in fact, losing. He leaned on his side of the table. "Why don't we make this more interesting?"

"What do you mean? A wager? You know neither of us has any money," she replied. None of the Titans were legal age to gamble either. Didn't stop Cyborg and Beastboy from trying to wager off their chores with those ridiculous racing games they were always playing.

"I know that! Just a friend little bet," he said, his grin spreading across his green face until it nearly split his head in half. And Beastboy only ever smiled like that when he had something devious on his mind. Raven inwardly groaned.

"What do you suggest?" she asked, leaning forward on her elbows, idly blowing a loose strand of purple hair out of her eyes. She didn't really care what he wagered, she was going to win. It would take a miracle for Beastboy to win now.

"You win, I don't bug you for a whole month. Honest. No singing, no telling jokes, heck I won't stay in the same room as you if you don't want me too. For a full 30 days!" he announced proudly.

Raven was so shocked her head nearly hit the chessboard before she caught herself. Was he serious? A whole month free of Beastboy's pestering and joke-telling and more peace and sanctity in her room to read her books...

... all alone...

... in the dark.

Raven shook her head, shaking off her feelings of loneliness. No, she'd be a fool not to take advantage of this. And she was so close to winning anyway! She'd done the math, all her pieces were in place. She wasn't a masterful strategist like Robin but she was a hell of a lot better than Beastboy, and she was winning damnit! She almost leapt out of her seat to accept his offer but then immediately stopped herself. An inner voice giving her warning. _This was Beastboy_, it was telling her. _He's smirking. He's got something up his sleeve. He didn't yet tell you what happens if HE won!_

_He won't win_, she thought.

"... and if you win?" she asked cautiously, one eyebrow quirked, her face betraying none of her inner thoughts.

"Then you have to come with me to the beach for a whole day!" said Beastboy triumphantly, laying out his terms on the table. "And have fun!"

"I don't do 'fun'," she replied coldly, her eyes narrowing.

"Awww come on, it's just one day! Just one day I'm asking you to come down to the beach and enjoy the surf and turf! And wear a bathing suit! I don't want you just hanging out on the beach in your cloak reading some boring book all day."

"My books are not boring," she stated, her voice still cold. "And I don't have a bathing suit."

"Oh but friend Raven," chimed in Starfire, who'd been paying attention to their conversation. "What of that violet item of clothing you purchase a few days ago from the mall of shopping and hid in your room? Was that not what you called a suit of bathing?"

Raven's eyes narrowed dangerously, and her teeth ground down hard against one another, nearly sending sparks into the air.

Starfire noticed, and wisely backed away. "It was... uhm... meant to be a secret?" she wondered aloud.

Raven glared darkly, and Starfire wisely turned and fled back to her cooking. Then Raven's head swiveled on her neck like a lighthouse's light and she shot daggers from her eyes at Robin and Cyborg (who'd paused their game to listen in) and they quickly turned around and went back to gaming. Finally, her lavender gaze (tinged with crimson) fell on the unfortunate Beastboy, who looked on the verge of morphing into a cheetah and tearing out of the room quick as possible.

Then, she smirked. But it wasn't a nice smirk. It made Raven look downright evil.

"Alright, Beastboy. If that's what you really want. If you win, I'll go to the beach with you. I'll have "fun"," she said, making quotation marks with her fingers. "I'll wear a bathing suit that, until now, has not seen the light of day," she said with a grin, arms folded across her chest. It was quite obvious to Beastboy she thought she couldn't fail.

"Deal!" he all but shouted, reaching across the chessboard and grabbing her hand for a firm handshake, the agreed upon way to settling a bet's terms. She nodded, shaking his hand back, and returned to the game.

"So go ahead and move already Beastboy," she stated, eager to be finished and start enjoying her Beastboy-antic-free month.

"Gladly!" he dramatically pronounced, then with a flourish picked up his Queen and knocked her down a few black and white squares, passing by Raven's Black King (now was not the time) to claim her Knight, who'd been protecting the King not unlike their real medieval counterparts. A black aura engulfed Raven's Rook as it slid across the board to knock aside Beastboy's Queen, neatly snatching her from the game. She grinned triumphantly. His best piece was gone. The game was hers!

... that, however, is when she noticed the Pawn.

... that is when her vision seemed to clear, and she took a good long look at the chess board. Though there were few white pieces than black, they were arranged in a very neat configuration that, until now, she hadn't noticed.

... she'd been duped! Beastboy had deliberately sacrificed his Queen to get her attention, knowing she couldn't resist snatching it up. That and to take out the protection of the Black King! Now... oh god.

Beastboy smirked and, with a deliberate flourish, picked up the Pawn in question. No longer did he look confused, bewildered, or fearful of losing, but confident. Overly so, in her opinion. He'd had this planned from the moment he'd asked her to game. She should've sensed it but her telepathy was limited when she wasn't actually concentrating on using it. A drawback of her meditation which suppressed her powers.

The green-skinned metamorph placed down the Pawn beside Raven's King in exactly the position it needed to be, and she saw it was indeed trapped, it's escape cut off by a few of her own pieces and some of his, which she hadn't noticed until just that moment. Even before he pronounced this dreadful words, she knew exactly what was coming.

"Check-mate."

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The next morning came entirely too early for Raven. Normally very meticulous in her habits she was a night owl, who preferred to rise late in the day if possible and retire much later in the evening after finishing off a good book. Unfortunately, today was the day she'd been forced to come to the beach with Beastboy for a "fun" time. She expected this to be nothing short of a disaster.

So it was she stood in the hallway at six in the morning, her blue cloaked wrapped tightly around her body to prevent a glimpse of what she was wearing underneath, and a pair of sandals on her feet. She'd agreed to the pact and was honor-bound to fulfill it to the letter, and thus she'd dragged the bathing suit out of her drawers and changed with great reluctance. She was waiting for Beastboy, who'd woken her up them promptly forgotten half of his things and had to rush back to his room to retrieve them. Honestly, the metamorph gave new meaning to the term scatterbrained.

Finally, Beastboy was there again, with his arms laden with all sorts of beach-related equipment. Folding chairs, beach ball, umbrella, beach towels, and more. He was barely able to hold it all and still maintain his balance.

"Oh!" he said suddenly, just as Raven was about to teleport them. She lowered her hand and glanced at him in frustration. "Forgot the suntan lotion... one moment Rae," he said, dropping the rest of his gear and shifting into a bird, making his way back down the hallway to his room to get it. Raven sighed, tapping her sandaled foot, and waited impatiently for him to return.

"This is going to be pure hell, isn't it?" she muttered to no one in particular.

Just herself and Beastboy on a remote beach several miles off the coast of Jump City, on a tourist attraction island few visited. Too expensive. But of course nothing was too good for the cities resident superheroes, and they'd been given special permission to use it for a day. No one to bother them. Had Cyborg, Robin, or Starfire been coming along, Raven might've felt reasonably better. As it was, Robin and Starfire had a date of sorts planned for the day, and Cyborg claimed he didn't care much for beaches. Though his state-of-the-art titanium was waterproof it didn't take well to sand in his joints, they'd break him down like so much scrap in no time. Thus, only Beastboy and Raven were attending her beach trip from hell.

"Pure hell," she repeated.

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Beastboy picked up the suntan lotion (a must, if Raven was along. That pale skin of hers would burn in seconds if he wasn't around to help her) and made his way back down the corridor towards the main doors when he could've sworn he heard laughter coming from the nearby room of Cyborg. Pausing, he glanced inside, to see the Mechanical and Boy Wonders talking and laughing.

"Oh come man, no way she'll last that long," said Cyborg. "Beastboy'll be done in an hour, tops!"

"No way. She won't do it out in public, she'll wait until they get home. I guarantee."

"Bet?" asked Cyborg, offering his robotic arm. Robin clasped it in his, and shook.

"Bet."

"Betting how long it takes me to get Raven to smile?" asked Beastboy, interrupting their conversation. Both teens glanced at him, a little surprised he was still here, and awkwardly shook their heads.

"Uhm, actually Beastboy," explained Robin. "We were betting how long it would take until Raven killed you."

Beastboy felt a shiver go down his spine. Then, with a frown, glanced over at Cyborg.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence rustbucket!" he called out, turning back to head back and re-join Raven. He'd show them. He'd make Raven smile, damnit. They'd have fun. And she could stop being so insufferably depressed and creepy all the time.

"I'll be certain to send flowers to your funeral, saladhead!" Cyborg called out as the door slid shut.

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Arriving at the beach was little trouble, Raven arranged for a short teleportation jump, and the two of them were on the beach in mere moments. And what a beach it was. Even the normally quiet and stoic Raven took a moment to let her mouth hang open in awe.

The tiny island of Mofire was several miles of the coast of Jump City. By peculiar luck it was small enough to not attract too much attention, yet large enough to house a working tourist attraction. People from Jump City (generally those who could afford it, travel to and from the island could become expensive) came here to enjoy the beaches. And with good reason. No hard, rocky black beaches like the sort you usually found in parts of California, but a fine, ivory white sand tinted with gold that stretched out as far as the eye could see, the sea-blue waters splashing against it with a soft rhythm that was at once alluring and peaceful. Just past the beaches itself, the island was a tropical paradise with palm trees and the like. The hotel and accommodations usually used by the public were on the opposite end of the island, and of course the mayor of Jump City had requested that the resident heroes be given their privacy for this days outing. Beastboy's plans.

Now that they were here, Raven allowed a tiny smile to touch her pale lips. It was very peaceful. Very soothing. Despite her initial thoughts she might actually enjoy herself over this day.

A sudden crash grabbed her attention, and she glanced over her shoulder at the green-skinned metamorph, who had been trying to set up the beach chairs and the umbrella to keep the worst of the sun's rays off of them. And had _somehow_ managed to wind up in a position that could only be described as pretzel, wedged halfway between a chair with a umbrella wedged between his arms. He looked remarkably uncomfortable, and as he turned to see she had spotted him, equally embarrassed. He rubbed the back of his head nervously.

"Uhm... little help here?" he asked.

_Pure hell_, she thought, rolling her eyes. Then, she waved her hand in an absent-minded motion, and the chair, umbrella, and Beastboy were engulfed in a black aura and hurled into the air... and allowed to gracefully drop down into their appropriate positions, the chair, then the umbrella behind it, then Beastboy himself, landing right into the chair.

"Woooh... nice!" he shouted, smiling over at her with his lopsided grin. Then, without wasting another moment he tore off his shirt and kicked off his sandals, stripping down to his bright purple bathing trunks (normally would never have worked on any male individual, but Beastboy's unusual pallor helped him pull it off) and ran down to the water with his arms waving at his sides like a six-year-old, diving head-first into the icy cold waters and swimming out a little ways.

"Such a child," she half-muttered to herself, taking her sweet time and lying down on the beach chair, watching Beastboy with only a passing interest. After all, with no books there was little worth doing at the moment.

And Beastboy was hardly any child. He was nearly fourteen, after all, but apart from his size he looked far older. He barely came up Raven's chin (and Raven was on the smallish side herself) but his body was lean and sculptured from half a decade of battling crime and preparing to battle that crime. He did not work out as constantly as did say, the Boy Wonder, but he certainly kept in shape. And now watching him, seeing his green skin so wet, his short green bangs clinging to his forehead...

Raven angrily pushed down those emotions, sealed them up back in her mind, and tried to focus herself. What was she thinking anyway? Beastboy wasn't cute, she told herself angrily. He wasn't even funny.

In the back of her mind, Raven knew she was lying to herself. But she'd been living a lie for so very long, out of necessity, that the lie had become believed by the one who had made it.

Sighing, Raven folded her legs underneath her and placed her palms on her knees, facing up, closing her eyes. Doing her best to ignore the sounds of Beastboy enjoying the water and just focused on the water itself. On the soothing, steady rhythm of the waves. And tried to meditate.

"Azerath... Metrion..."

"Hey Raven!"

Raven sighed inwardly, allowing a single eye to pop open to spot Beastboy, waving excitedly.

"Come in and enjoy the water!"

"... later," she managed to say, when she could think of an appropriate response. If at all, she added silently.

"Hey come on you promised!" he said back at her, wading his way back towards the shore and shaking off droplets of water like a dog... not even bothering to metamorph into one to complete the illusion. "You said you'd come here and have fun!"

"Our definitions of fun have entirely different meanings," she replied, closing her eye again.

"Well at least get into your suit! You promised me that much, at least!" he retorted, standing in front of her.

Raven sighed again, this time outwardly, and realized she'd never have peace until she complied. Without hesitation she stood up, barely three feet in front of Beastboy, and reached up with a quick, angry motion towards the clasp of her blue cloak. Beastboy, mistaking the angry gesture for an attack, stumbled backwards and fell onto his butt in the sand, peering up at Raven. She undid the clasp angrily and tore off her cloak, hurling it aside with a single gesture, and allowed Beastboy to see her as she'd been most of the day, concealed by her cloak.

Raven was a bathing suit the color of crushed grapes, a dark violet that seemed to perfectly match her hair. Despite Beastboy's profound hopes that Starfire had convinced her to buy a two-piece thong bikini, the suit was a one-piece that covered Raven almost as completely as her regular sorcerer's clothes did. Only this suit allowed her arms up to her shoulders and a portion of her neck to be visible, as the suit plunged down low, though it stopped a good ways above her developing teenaged bosom. Her make-up was gone, even Raven seemed to realize that it would be ruined in the water and salty air, and the only mark on her face now was the red charka gemstone on her forehead.

Beastboy hung there with his mouth slack, and peered up at Raven in surprise, shock, and awe. She looked... totally different. If not for the somewhat dour expression on her face he could see no similarities between the sullen sorceress at Titan's Tower and the girl standing before him.

His plan was working. Now if only he could make her smile.

"Raven... wow... you look..." he started to stutter out.

"... incredible."

Beastboy and Raven's head snapped up nearly simultaneously and directly to their right, both shocked beyond belief they'd been surprised by the newcomer in their midst. Neither of them had sensed him coming, not heard so much as a footfall in the sand.

The newcomer was a young boy not much older than Raven or Beastboy, perhaps sixteen at the most, with long black hair that was perpetually damp with water and clung to his head and down the back of his neck. His eyes were a curious white on black that gave him an exotic, alien look, which was complimented by the strange uniform of blue top and black trousers, gloves, and boots he wore, separated by white jagged lightning bolts. A closer look confirmed an initial guess, the uniform was made to resemble fish scales.

Raven and Beastboy both relaxed somewhat. They jogged over to meet the stranger. Who, in actuality, was not so much of a stranger to them.

"Aqualad... what brings you here?" asked Raven, ignoring his comment on her attire for the moment. If Aqualad had left his watery home there might have been trouble for the Titans, particularly if he'd contacted them.

"Just in the neighborhood on a routine patrol and I happened to sense my green-skinned buddy was in the area," he said, giving a nod of his head to indicate Beastboy.

"Is that normal for Titan's East to patrol this far?" asked Raven, quirking an eyebrow in curiousity.

"Well normally no but I took some time off to go patrol my homeland," he said. "Plus, I had to get out of the Tower. Speedy and Bumblebee arguing for leadership rights of East again. I needed some breathing space."

"I hear that," said Beastboy. He didn't know either of the Titan East co-leaders very well but he knew how egos could sometimes clash. Whenever Cyborg and Robin had an argument (getting more frequent these days) he also tended to go out on a random patrol or for a walk to get out of the Tower.

"Anyway, though I'd drop by and see if you needed a hand, but looks like I'm not needed here," concluded Aqualad.

"Nah, just takin' some time off," said Beastboy, placing both hands behind the back of his head non-challantly.

Aqualad took another look at Raven, giving her a once-over. Raven, despite herself, felt her cheeks grow hot at his look. "So I see," remarked the dark-haired Atlantean. "Well I've no pressing matters down below at the moment... you two care for company?"

"Uh..." started Beastboy.

"Uh..." started Raven.

"No!"

"Yes!" they said simultaneously, then glanced at each other in surprise. They started talking practically at the same time, leaving Aqualad confused as he glanced between them, trying to listen to two sentences being hurled at him at once.

"There's really no need..."

"Oh you'd be more than welcome..."

"... really you should head back below..."

"... we'd be glad to have some company..."

"... meet up with your fish-buddy Tramm..."

"... really we'd love for you to stay!"

"... really there's no need for you to stay!"

A full minute passed, during which time Aqualad shook his head, trying to decipher what had just been said, glancing between Raven and Beastboy. Finally, after a full moment he caught up and offered a smile, directing it at Raven.

"I'd be glad to stay for a while," he said generously, speaking to her.

Had she been an animated cartoon character, little pink hearts would have started floating above Raven's head at that moment. Her cheeks were burning crimson against her pale flesh. "T-Thank you," she managed to stutter out, politely inviting him over towards the beach chair and umbrella they'd set up. A quick flick of her TK powers and the second chair they'd brought along joined the first. Aqualad offered some sort of comment concerning Raven's attire, and she responded with another blush and a small laugh. None it was heard by the third member of their clique, who was still standing exactly where he was, a short distance away.

If Raven had little cartoon hearts floating above her head, Beastboy had fumes coming out his ears.

_How dare he! This was supposed to be my time alone with Raven! My time to make her smile, damnit! And Aqualad pops up out of the blue (literally) and steals it all away from me?! Not on my watch_. Beastboy trudged back towards the chairs to join them, his mind already formulating a new plan.

One doomed to failure.

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**Author's Notes:**

No real comic references to the story yet, save the name-calling between Cyborg and Beastboy (apparently they did it all the time in the comics). This is my first attempt with a love-triangle so I humbly apologize if it turns out to be less than garbage in the eyes of many. This story was primarily inspired by the events of 'Deep Six,' where we see the first signs of Raven having a crush on Aqualad and Beastboy being Aqualad's rival. Next time, things _really_ start to go downhill.


	2. II

Almost a year ago, the Titans met a young metahuman girl by the name of Terra. A girl gifted with, among other things, the ability to move the earth as if it was a part of her, to control rock and stone and make it shake and shudder at her command. However, beyond this she had a number of talents that endeared her early on to the Titan's.

Among these was an incredibly sense of humor and appreciation for other's sense of humor.

Like Beastboy's.

Previously unappreciated for his sense of humor, thought of as something of a joke by the Titans, even if they did not say it aloud, Beastboy was glad at least to have someone who appreciated his humor and even return it to him. As such, Terra and Beastboy instantly bonded and started spending a lot of time together when they were both Titans. In particular, during a trip to the park when they would play Frisbee. Or rather, Terra would throw a Frisbee and Beastboy, in the form of a dog, would catch it and bound back to her, and they would laugh and smile and be so very happy together...

... and Raven would sit on the side-lines, generally under the shade of a tree, and watch them. She had a book in hand, she could easily claim she'd been reading the last passage... for the ninetieth time. But she'd been watching Beastboy and Terra. And envying them. And in particular, envying Terra. Wishing, not for the first time, it could have been her playing Frisbee with Beastboy.

And now, the roles were reversed.

Beastboy was the one on the sidelines, sitting in the sand with his knees drawn up to his chest and his arms wrapped around them. Idly he watched as Aqualad made some comment (he was too far away to properly hear) and watched Raven chuckle. Not a full blown laugh, but more than he'd ever seen from her. Well, the regular her at least. The pink-clad Raven had laughed plenty. She'd found him funny. But it didn't seem like the regular Raven did. Especially not now. She was having too much fun as Aqualad did his best to try and teach her how to swim. Of all the Titans, she and Cyborg had never learned. Well, Cyborg had in a previous life but nowadays if he got near water he sank like a stone, too heavy with all the mechanics that kept him going. And Starfire had found a very willing and attentive teacher in Robin. Especially after the first time Robin had seen her in that purple bathing suit she'd bought. But Raven had never bothered to learn...

... until now. When Aqualad had suddenly come across them and decided to join them for a day at the beach.

Fumes nothing. Beastboy's hair was on fire and his eyes were glaring such pure hatred at Aqualad he was surprised the taller teen wasn't knocked flat on his back, if not completely incinerated.

Beastboy frowned darkly, and allowed himself to listen in on their conversation. His pointed ears were loosely anchored against the sides of his head, not unlike a dog's, and he could swivel them to a certain degree to allow better hearing in a certain direction even without shapeshifting. He could also wiggle them, which some girls seemed to love. Especially Terra.

Raven, however, was a different story.

She'd always been a different story.

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"Oh come on Raven I thought you were doing fine," said Aqualad generously, as Raven spluttered and spat out a mouthful of water. "Come on, you just need to relax and float there, your body does the rest."

"Forget it," she grumbled, wringing out her long purple locks. "If I haven't learned it by now there's no point in continuing. It's not important." She started to trudge through the waist-deep water back towards the shore. Aqualad gave pursuit.

"Hey come on you were doing good, just one more..."

"No..." she shot back at him, not bothering to turn her head.

"But..."

"I said no!" she said darkly, throwing out a hand. A wave of black energy washed through the water and sent a small tidal wave right into the surprised Aqualad. However, to his credit, he barely flinched as the water splashes over his body and washed around him. He quirked an eyebrow, an amused smile on his lips.

"Word of advice, Rae," he said, crouching down into what could be surmised as a combatic stance. "Never get drawn into a water-fight with an Atlantean!"

So saying, Aqualad scooped up his hands and, using them and his entire body, sent a slightly smaller wave crashing right back at Raven, knocking the lavender-haired sorceress clear off her feet and into the water. She emerged spluttering for air but smiling none-the-less.

"Alright alright I give..." she said, throwing up her hands in mock surrender.

He smiled back, offering her a hand to help her back to her feet. "Now come on," he said. "You were showing real progress a minute ago."

She sighed and reluctantly admitted defeat. "Alright, alright... one more time. Then I'm heading in. I'm seriously starting to get tired."

"Fair enough," he replied. "Okay, like before... lie flat on your back, and relax... arms stretched out, and just float..." Aqualad instructed his student, allowing her to float on the water. Still, she wasn't doing much better now than when she started. Some instinctive part of Raven's subconscious wouldn't allow her to relax. Ever. It was making floating hard. "Here," he said, an idea coming to him. He knelt down beside her, placing a hand flat on her back to help keep her afloat. "Just relax, I'm keeping you up for now... when you're relaxed I'll remove my hand and let you-...!"

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!"

The shout startled both Raven and Aqualad, causing the former to splash back down into the water for the umpteenth time, and the other to stumble backwards in shock as Beastboy came barreling down to the waterside, spitting fire and brimstone, or so it seemed. "Get your hands off of her!"

Aqualad was, to say the least, startled by the tone of Beastboy. He'd never seen him quite so... well, angry at him. The worst he'd ever seen had been a year and a half ago, when they'd first met, and that had been at most mild irritation because of his competitive nature. But this... this was something new. The black-haired Atlantean stood angrily, biting back a sharp retort for Beastboy to mind his own damn business, and was about to offer an apology and an explanation that he was, in all honesty, only trying to teach Raven how to swim as best he knew how (teaching surface dwellers wasn't his forte, after all) when suddenly...

... the little beach party was crashed by yet -another- unwelcome guest.

A roar split the air, and Raven, Beastboy and Aqualad turned with equal shock as a great wave washed over the three of them, knocking Raven and Beastboy into the shallows and Aqualad a short distance from them as a great behemoth arose from the watery depths. A giant black squid, or so it seemed, of great size, nearly twice that of the T-Sub. Unlike its normal brethren this squid had a mere four tentacles tipped in vicious barbs and a great mouth on the side of it's head filled with razor-sharp teeth not unlike a shark's. Not two, nor three, but four eyes rested above the mouth of the great squid, each glowing with a red malevolence as it peered down at the young heroes. Another roar from the great monstrosity split the air.

"A Kraken!" exclaimed Raven in shock.

"A what?!" shouted Beastboy and Aqualad simultaneously.

Another roar prevented Raven from answering. Well that and the fact that one of the now-identified-as-a-Kraken's tentacles had lashed out, big enough and fast enough to crush them all of they weren't quick enough. Beastboy lunged towards Raven to knocked her out of the way, but he wasn't moving fast enough. They'd be crushed.

Aqualad, however, had beaten the shorter-legged metamorph to the punch, it seemed. He moved a lot faster in water than Beastboy did, and he even managed to scoop up Beastboy under his other arm as he rushed forward and grabbed up Raven, making a dive out of the way to avoid the Kraken's tentacle. The great crash send up waves of salt water and sand but none of the Titans were injured by the attack. Just badly shaken.

"Thank you," said Raven, as Aqualad gently set her back down on her feet.

"Yeah, thanks," grunted out Beastboy, getting back on his own darn feet and brushing some imaginary lint off his shoulder. "Come on, let's give this thing the old one-two!"

"Wait!" shouted Raven, flinging up a hand. But Beastboy didn't hear her as he charged at the Kraken in the form of a ram, giving a leap to clear the water and slamming his great horns right into the things side, knocking it back. However, any damage he dealt was negligible, as the Kraken lashed out with its tentacle and swatted Beastboy aside as if he was a fly. He found himself buried face-first in the sand and had to yank himself back out again, spitting out sand that had somehow found its way into his mouth.

"Ptooey!"

"Stay back! You can't fight this thing!" Raven shouted, her voice tinged equally with fear and anger. "It's from the same dimension as the Ravager!" An ebon glow surrounded her hands as her powers subconsciously started to power up.

"The Ravager?!" cried out Beastboy fearfully.

Well did the Titan's remember the Ravager. He had been their first foe faced as a team. Back when they'd first been drawn together by a mysterious telepath and told they were needed to save the world. And, indeed, the universe. They'd saved all of Earth from a terrible demon from a nether dimension. A demon who, Raven had later admitted, was her own father (after Cyborg and Beastboy's disastrous trip through the looking glass). A creature of unparallel evil and power that sought the utter destruction of all dimensions beyond his own. Earth had been the next step for him, but at the time, he'd needed to work through intermediaries and minions to achieve his ends. And at that time, against a fledgling team of Titans, his minion had been the Ravager.

A two story high scorpion-spider hybrid with the same black skin and four red eyes as the Kraken. Beastboy could immediately see the resemblance now that Raven had told them of their foe.

Big, ugly, four eyes.

Yup. Definitely a family resemblance.

Good thing Raven took after the mother's side of her family in that regard.

And if -that- was true then they were seriously in trouble. The Ravager had been a tough foe for all of the Titans. And worse, Raven's magic wasn't particularly powerful against creatures from her dad's home dimension. She'd be out of her league.

"We should re-group and get the other Titans," said Raven, ignoring the inner musings of Beastboy as she made her way towards the beach chairs and umbrella she'd set up earlier. Where she'd left her Titan communicator. Beastboy had left his behind. He hadn't been expecting trouble.

"What's she talking about? What's a Ravager?!" asked Aqualad. Another tentacle lashed out at him from the shore but he was more than amply prepared this time and flipped up and over it with the grace of an acrobat.

"Trouble. Big trouble!" summarized Beastboy, not having time to give their companion the full details right now.

"Azerath... Metrion... Zinthos!" intoned Raven, chanting the words to fuel her magic. The black auras engulfing her hands shot out like a beam and struck the Kraken full between the eyes, knocking the great beast back into the water, letting another swell of water rise up as the beast vanishes temporarily from view.

"Did we get it?" asked Beastboy.

A monstrous tentacle was the reply as it swung out of seeming nowhere, grabbed a hold of Beastboy by the ankle and flung him full force into the startled Aqualad, sending them both tumbling through the sand.

"Answer your question?" grunted Aqualad, angrily shoving Beastboy off of him.

"Azerath Metrio Zinth-ackt!" cried out Raven as her incantation was cut off, a great tentacle wrapped around her throat, cutting off her vocal cords and making it hard to breathe. The Kraken's tooth-filled mouth curled back into a grin.

"Enough of that, little spawn," it hissed darkly.

Aqualad's eyes widened in shock, mostly because of Raven's predicament, but also partially because of the way the Kraken identified her. Still, it didn't slow him a second as he shouted out "Put her down!" However, at almost the exact same instant...

"LET GO OF HER!"

Beastboy roared and charged forward on all fours, shifting into a great gorilla that knuckled its way across the sand and slammed a fist into the side of the Kraken with slightly less force than a battering ram. The Kraken gave another earth-shaking roar, this time genuinely mixed with sweet pain, and lashed out at Beastboy, who caught the tentacle in his great hairy gorilla arms and growled back at the Kraken.

"Not this time," he roared, hauling backwards on the tentacle, trying to tear it out by the roots. The Kraken struggled mightily, and in its thrashing about it released Raven, previously hanging several feet above the ground by another of it's tentacles. Aqualad was quick to catch her before she hit the ground.

Raven, coughing for breath, peered up at Aqualad, who watched her with some concern, gently setting her down on her feet. "You alright...?" he asked.

"Fine..." she coughed out, still trying to suck oxygen into her starved lungs.

Beastboy, nearby, risked a glance back over his shoulder to see if Raven was alright... and saw her with Aqualad. A critical mistake. It allowed his concentration to waver. And in that instant, the Kraken grabbed up Beastboy's arms and legs with all four of it's tentacles and hauled him high up into the air. Beastboy, startled, gave out a cry, shifting back to his regular form, and the Kraken reared back like a baseball pitcher and hurled Beastboy as far as the eye could follow off into the horizon. Thankfully off towards Jump City and the water, rather than the opposite direction. At least he'd have a semi-soft landing.

"Keh keh keh," laughed the Kraken wickedly, turning its attention back to Raven. Aqualad, seeing she was still trying to gather herself together, took up a defensive stance in front of her. "Out of my way," hissed the Kraken, lashing out with it's tentacles. Aqualad batted them aside... though with some considerable difficulty. He may've been one of the strongest Atlanteans in existence (second only to their King, truthfully) but this demonic squid was easily that strong and far larger. Worse, four tentacles allowed it to move in unpredictable ways as opposed to the two-armed opponents he was used to fighting. Unable to properly predict what was coming, Aqualad blocked two tentacles but allowed a third to slip past him and slap him upside the head like a sledgehammer, sending him face-first into the sand.

"Aqualad!" cried out Raven. Growling darkly she lashed out with her hand, grabbing up great fistfuls of sand and hurling them at the Kraken.

"Keh keh keh," it laughed wickedly, as the sand brushed against it harmlessly. "You hope to defeat me with your father's magic, little spawn?"

The Kraken hissed out a single, dreadful word that, although unknown to Raven, somehow sounded offensive. Whatever else it was, it was certainly magical. The sand dropped down in seconds, her power controlling it dissipating.

"No..." she gasped out, raising her hands. She tried another spell... but it too failed her. The Kraken had somehow sapped her strength.

"Now you're coming with me, little spawn," hissed the Kraken, lashing out with its tentacles. Two grabbed Raven's arms, pinning them at her sides and digging in their sharp talons as the third grabbed her legs and the fourth wrapped around her neck to prevent her from speaking, not wishing her to enact a counter-spell to the Kraken's counter-spell. That done, the Kraken lifted her up and dragged her, still screaming, under the water and the briny depths of the ocean surrounding Mofire Island.

Raven's only salvation lay unconscious on the beach in the sand and nearly a hundred yards out at sea on the water, respectively.

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"WHAT?!"

"It took Raven," grunted Aqualad, clutching his aching head. He'd taken a nasty fall, after all. And Beastboy's shouting wasn't helping. He'd swam ashore shortly after the battle had finished, finding a missing Kraken, a missing Raven, and an unconscious Aqualad. He'd helped the older, dark-haired boy up and brushed off some sand, helping him as he came to, and then immediately started asking questions. This had been his reaction.

"We have to go after her!" he shouted, running down towards the water's edge, morphing into a dolphin. He stopped abruptly, however, when Aqualad grabbed his tail and held him in place.

"Don't be stupid! The three of us couldn't defeat that thing and now it's got Raven. We should call for back-up," he said, reaching down to his belt. Like most Titans, he kept a communicator in his uniform and most all times. In case of emergency. Titans East would be ready to roll in less than ten minutes with their own T-Sub. Cyborg had been a rather dutiful supplier to the fledgling Titan team.

_It'll take too long! _said Beastboy telepathically, swatting his tail out of Aqualad's hand. _I'm going now, with or without your help! _So saying the great green dolphin smoothly leapt up and dove into the water without so much as a backward glance at Aqualad.

_Idiot_, Aqualad muttered in the back of his mind. However, he quickly dove into the water. Beastboy was going to need some back-up against the Kraken. Especially if they were heading underwater. And most of the other Titans wouldn't be of much help anyway. Not underwater.

So it was up to them to rescue Raven.

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**Author's Notes:**

Again, still no comic references. However, the story does contain a large number of references to my first Titan story 'Secret Origins.' While reading of the former is not necessary to understand the plot, it certainly wouldn't be a bad idea (I have no shame, I know) for more details about a creature similar to the Kraken. Again I apologize if this love-triangle is badly written or portrayed. I'm trying to keep them all as in-character as possible but I feel I'm failing miserably. The reference to Cyborg and Beastboy's trip "through the looking glass" was of course referring to the events of 'Nevermore.' Oh yes, and before proceeding I should warn you that italics primarily refer to inner-thoughts and/or telepathy, since BB and Aqualad won't be able to talk to one another in the convention sense. Next time: Can Beastboy and Aqualad put aside their differences and save Raven? Or will the Kraken destroy them all?

Dragonblond: Believe me, seeing Raven in a bikini would be satisfying to the guy in me, but I'm realistic. We're lucky to get her in the bathing suit at all. I am glad you enjoyed Beastboy winning the chess, most people seem to think Raven would've beaten the pants off him. I do hope you enjoy the triangle and I write it well.

Yomiori-Wolfdemon: Not the best film I've ever seen, certainly not. I do hope you won't kill me though, for what I do to BB. Believe me, all is planned. And I am a fan first and foremost of the core five Titans, not the honoraries or the East gang.

Falling: Quick as Kid Flash, promise.

Todd Fan: Season, you mean? Yes I know we're starting season four and I eagerly anticipate it and more of Raven's daddy. Should be fun.

VeelaChic: Working on it as much as I can.

Greg867: I would consider, were I able to find it. May I suggest you log on for you next review? In any case do enjoy the story, though I hope you'll view Aqualad more sympathetically. He's not that bad of a guy, ya know.

Cherry6124: Myself as well, as you can no doubt tell from my previous stories. But I do hope you enjoy the story anyway.

Mephisto2022: Soon as I can, given that I am still a part-time student and a part-time worker. Got obligations.

Dancingirl3: Yes already!

Staticsponge123: Aiya! I'm updating I'm updating!

Hybrid Illusions: I'll forgive ya since you're new. And your review is off, but mostly by length, and I appreciate long detailed reviews like yours. Keep 'em up. I do hope you enjoy the story. As for Cyborg, it was a smidgen ooc but he was trying to be overly silly. Not like he would really send flowers. We all know Raven… what? Uh, may want to check the couples in my profile before you read on. Do enjoy though.

ViciousAssassin: Well well well look who's here. And Raven may be telepathic but she's not very powerful. But still, you're right, she should've checked. Ah well, her loss. Or maybe she wanted to lose? Hmmmm? Actually, I showed Cyborg and Robin's bet but specifically neglected to mention Starfire. The end of my story will clear that up. Heh.

Dust-in: Well Beastboy was an only child but I see what you mean. Hope I do these three justice.

Princess-Raven-Dark: Quick as humanly possible.

Ray1: I used to be the same way, they were incredibly cute together. But after the evidence presented in 'Beast Within' I can't stick to my guns. Raven/BB for me. I do hope you enjoy the story though.

Inuyashastwin: Plenty more to come, believe you me. Do enjoy.

Benny2000: Hope you are still enjoying it, now that the humor has been pushed aside for action.

Seth Turtle: Raven in a swimsuit has been something I've always wanted to see, but we likely won't since she, and the other Titans, are in uniform 24-7 (even in their frickin' sleep!). Pity. Glad you like the story. I am unworthy of such praise.


	3. III

Beastboy immediately dove fast, heading deep into the water and down into it's murky depths. No sign of Raven could be seen, the Kraken had moved too fast to be noticed. Apparently while he'd wasted time getting back to shore and Aqualad had been napping. He gave a little growl, his form morphing subconsciously into that of a shark before he allowed himself to relax. He needed to stay focused to find Raven before she drowned.

Or worse, the Kraken killed her.

Beastboy dove still deeper, stretching out all of his senses in every direction. He didn't find anything. He couldn't even locate either of them on his dolphin sonar. For lack of a better term, they'd both simply up and vanished.

_No, they had to be around here somewhere_.

_This way_, Aqualad said, diving down before Beastboy and halting himself. _I had a chat with some crabs due east, the Kraken went that way. Let's move_. Aqualad wasted no time in speeding past Beastboy, kicking his powerful legs. Beastboy, however, kept pace... and nearly managed to surpass him as well. _Slow down! You're going to wear yourself out before we find Raven! Save some of your strength for fighting! _Aqualad called out after him.

_If we wait Raven might not be alive!_ Was the terse response, as Beastboy shifted form into that of a barracuda and shot ahead like a bolt through the water.

_Hold it!_ shouted Aqualad, and reluctantly Beastboy, recognizing the tone of his voice, stopped at let the dark-haired Atlantean catch-up. Truthfully, he was starting to get tired, but he wasn't about to stop now. Not while one of his teammates was in danger.

_Now come on let's think about this for a moment, why would the Kraken take Raven? Why not just kill her up above? We both saw it could've done so easily_.

Beastboy's barracuda face took on a look of confusion, his eyes open wide as realization set in. _You're right, that doesn't make sense._

_What could he want her for then?_

_I dunno._

Aqualad pondered that for a moment, hand curled into a fist resting on his chin. Then a thought came to him. _Raven said this thing was like a Ravager. What's a Ravager? Maybe that'll offer a clue_.

_The Ravager was this muy-mega-big bad duded from this alternate dimension_, explained Beastboy, morphing into an octopus and stretching out his tentacles wide to give Aqualad of just what sort of size the Ravager had. _He wanted to free... uh_... he paused, hesitating on exactly how much he could tell Aqualad about Raven's heritage. Or whether or not he wanted to, for that matter.

_... this ultra bad demon dude from another dimension._

_What does that have to do with Raven?_ asked Aqualad.

_Raven showed up and helped us stop the Ravager._

_Maybe this thing wants revenge._

_Then like you said, why not kill her when it had the chance? Not that I'm complaining mind you. But it's almost like it needed her for someth-... oh no. _Beastboy shifted and morphed into a dolphin and took off like a shot all in one fluid motion, and Aqualad took a moment to catch up, unprepared for the sudden movement.

_Where the hell are you going?!_ he demanded.

_I just figured out what's going on!_ _I remembered what happened last time!_ Beastboy called out over his shoulder, pouring on more speed. If he was right, Raven was in serious trouble. Trouble with a capital T and a few exclamation points. The Kraken probably wanted Raven because of her connection to her father. And that was ALWAYS bad news.

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Raven groaned darkly as consciousness... reluctantly... returned to her, and forced her eyes open, though she immediately wished she hadn't. The bright light of the cavern assaulted both her lids and forced her to shut them, but it was far too late and her head throbbed like it'd been struck with a sledgehammer... repeatedly. Instinctively she tried to reach up to massage her temples but to her surprise she found she couldn't quite reach. And _that _snapped her to full consciousness in a mere few seconds.

The lavender-haired sorceress was currently hanging upside down by her ankles in a large, open-aired cave (which explained how she hadn't drowned so far) by some sort of odd kelp-like substance hanging from the ceiling. Kelp-like, but not kelp as far as he could tell. More of the stuff was wrapped around her wrists and a large piece was wrapped around her head, covering her mouth and preventing her from speaking. Her bathing suit had been torn by the barbed spikes on the Kraken's tentacles. Thankfully she was still decent, but a large piece of her midsection had been torn away, making her one-piece into a two-piece. The stench was unbearable, the whole place stank of rotting fish. And one didn't have to look far to tell why. The Kraken rested nearby, at an underwater pool a short distance away. This was an underwater cave then, like where Aqualad and Tramm had helped repaired the T-Sub.

The Kraken had stretched out all four of its tentacles and was using the tips to trace strange runes in the surface of the cave, tearing through the rock as easily as she might draw in the sand with a finger. The runes, when completed, started to glow with a sickly reddish, demonic aura. And then the tentacles would move to start another rune, until the surface of the cave started to become covered in them. Raven didn't recognize many of the runes, but those she did weren't pleasant.

Death. Evil. Rage. Hatred. Power. Transportation. Release.

And most especially, she recognized the rune for her father.

The Kraken paused briefly, all four tentacles stopping as he quirked two eyebrows on half of his face, glancing over and up at his suspended captive. Grinning, the great beast finished a rune and lifted up one of it's great tentacles towards Raven, who recoiled, her eyes narrowing in disgust. The other three tentacles continued to trace the dark runes of power.

"Welcome back to the waking world, little spawn... I was so hoping you'd join me in time for this all to be finished. I shouldn't be more than an hour," stated the Kraken. Any other who might've heard the great squid-like monster speaking in a cultured (if sinister) tone might have been somewhat surprised. Not Raven. The Ravager had been much like this. Powerful, but arrogant. She was starting to think it was a shared trait of all those from her father's dimension.

Herself, of course, being the exception.

The sickly, slimy tentacle of the Kraken caressed Raven's cheek in an almost affectionate gesture, but filled Raven with nothing but revulsion. If only she could harness her powers, she'd be free. And she'd slay this insufferable monster and teach it a thing or two...

... but she couldn't. Her powers were beyond her. The Kraken must've been blocking her mystical energy somehow. The gag was only a precaution.

Raven's power, of course, stemmed from the same source as the Kraken. Her father, the great and nearly all-powerful demon from the home dimension beyond earth. The world that could easily be mistaken with hell, by those few who'd glimpsed it and able to retain both their lives and sanity. Unlike the average demon from her father's dimension, however, Raven's power was growing with age. When she'd been younger, she'd needed the mystical words that the High Priestess had taught her to properly focus her powers without a strong emotional outburst... those tended to be less easily controlled. Now, only a short while later, her powers came to her with little need for magic words. They only serve to enhance her powers.

But it was all academic, of course. Here, it seemed, she had no powers. No communicator to contact the Titans. And she was hung upside down by kelp in a dripping wet bathing suit being held captive by an overgrown squid from her dad's dimension. And worst, she thought as she rolled her eyes, was that if she was trapped like this underwater, the only real hope she had lay in Beastboy and Aqualad.

_Wonderful_, she thought. _Those two will kill one another before they save her. If the Kraken didn't finish them all off first_.

_Wonderful._

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As it turned out, Beastboy and Aqualad were still searching for Raven, a short distance away...

... and had yet to come to blows...

... but they were darn close.

_I did everything I could to stop that thing!_ said-thought Beastboy angrily, glancing over to his side where Aqualad sped along him._ I didn't see you lending a hand!_

_Probably because you kept charging forward like an idiot!_ replied Aqualad, his mental voice sounding much like his regular one, and tinged with enough anger to make Beastboy's brain hurt_. And I thought you knew this thing?! If you knew it was tough why didn't you hang back and find a weakness first?!_

_Because Raven was in trouble you idiot!_

_You're no good to her if you can't take down that thing!_

_Not like you did any better!_

_I was unprepared! If we fight that thing underwater I'll win._

_You don't know how tough these things are!_

_Shut up!_

_You shaddup!_

_YOU SHUT UP!_

The blow came out of nowhere, and Aqualad went spinning through the water for a moment before a quick twist and turn righted himself. He rubbed his bruised cheek where Beastboy's snout had struck him. Dolphins noses _were_ unusually tough. But then again, so was he. A lifetime of living at the very deepest, most crushing depths of the ocean had given him a body that was harder than stone and skin tough as a rhino. Or nearly so. Beastboy would've felt that attack just as badly as he had.

_And you still haven't explained what this Kraken wants_! said Aqualad, rubbing his bruised cheek lightly as Beastboy glared at him (somehow managing to make even the peaceful looking face of a dolphin look menacing). Aqualad decided to be the bigger fish and let the blow slide, something he'd normally never do. His pride forbade it. But right now Raven was in trouble.

_It's complicated_, huffed out Beastboy.

_So's my family history_, replied Aqualad tersely. Without waiting for a reply he dropped down onto the ocean floor, eyes open wide in his search for something. Beastboy, confused, made his way down to watch him.

_What're you doing now?_

_Searching for Raven. She's nearby._

_How can you tell?_ Asked Beastboy, genuinely surprised. He too stretched out with his senses, trying to find some way to locate Raven. A glimpse of her, the sound of her voice, her scent, anything that could lead them to saving her.

_Because there's no fish nearby_, replied Aqualad, his telepathic "voice" very quiet. Beastboy felt a shiver run down his spine. Both of them did. They hadn't noticed earlier, being too engrossed in arguing and passing around blame. But the temperature of the reef they'd entered was a good few degrees colder than the surrounding waters. Icy cold. And, as Aqualad had pointed out, there was indeed no fish. None would dare approach. And that meant something bigger had scared them away.

The Kraken.

Raven.

_She has to be nearby_, said Beastboy. _Any ideas where?_

_I'm looking now_, replied Aqualad, running a hand along the ground, trying to find some evidence of the Kraken's passing. It shouldn't have been hard, but so far nothing.

_Good, just let me at that thing...!_ Beastboy said with something close to a mental growl.

_Would you relax?!_ Aqualad shouted telepathically, glancing up at him in irritation. _Last time we fought that thing you charged in headfirst and look where it got you! You got tossed aside like yesterday's trash_!

_Well what do you suggest then, oh mighty and powerful Aqualad?!_

_Stop that! This isn't the time to argue! Your friend is in danger!_

_Yeah like you care! You just wanna save the day and make yourself look like a hero and impress Ra-..._ Beastboy shut his mouth quickly, making an audible snap.

Aqualad quirked an eyebrow. Was -that- what was irking him so much? Frowning, he gave his telepathic power a little flex. Normally, it allowed him the ability to only communicate with fish with a mind-to-mind link. It was a light brushing of the minds, really. Nothing deep like a true telepath's power. Frankly he'd been as surprised as Beastboy had been when he'd found that he could communicate with a non-aquatic creature (well, whatever the heck category Beastboy fit in). Now, however, he narrowed his eyes, flexed his mental muscles, and tried to gently take a closer look...

... and his white on black eyes shot open in surprise.

_You...!_

_What?! Hey!! What're you doing going through my head!!_ shouted Beastboy angrily, realizing that his Atlantean rival had just plucked something right out of his head. That son of a barracuda! Beastboy roared, shifting form into that of a great white (well, green really) shark and opening his wide, tooth-filled jaw. He was going to rip Aqualad to shreds for that! Nobody messed with his mind!

However, before the two boys could come to blows...

... again...

... a dark shadow overtook them both, and it seemed as if the day had turned into night in a matter of seconds. Glancing up, they both saw a great shadow had engulfed the sun, cutting them off from the surface. Some sort of black water had engulfed the dead reef. A malevolent force was at work here. Aqualad, able to see in the depths of the ocean, could still see, but his visual range had dropped considerably. It was like he was in close quarters, and he tensed up instinctively. Behind him, Beastboy shifted form into a lantern-fish, illuminating the area in a sickly green glow as he put his scaly back to Aqualad's. Both of them watched... and waited... for their foe to show themselves.

This would likely be the fight of their lives. And if they didn't work together now...

They might not make it. Any of them.

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Squirming valiantly against her bonds was hopeless, Raven soon discovered. Though resembling kelp they were stronger than steel, and despite all the power at her command normally available, physically she was as weak and helpless as any other fifteen-year-old girl. Perhaps stronger than the average one (being a Titan tended to put you in good shape with all the crime-fighting they did) but still useless in her current state. So she sighed, reluctantly gave up (for now) and tried to focus on her problem from every conceivable angle until she found a weak point in the Kraken's power.

A pity she couldn't meditate, but with the blood rushing to her head it kinda made things hard.

Suddenly, a flicker of light caught her attention, and near the watery entrance to the underwater cave. One of the runes near the Kraken was glowing a bright reddish, tinged with violet. It seemed to be... reacting... to something. Like an alarm system reacting to an intruder.

The Kraken's four tentacles paused in their work as he idly glanced over at the rune in question. Although his expression was not even remotely human, somehow to Raven he seemed... annoyed.

"Intruders. They triggered the dark water trap," he hissed aloud, confirming her thoughts. He glanced up at her. "Well sit tight, little spawn... I'll handle them and be back in a mere moment or two. Don't run off. Keh keh keh," it laughed wickedly as it sank into the water and slipped out of the underground cave, vanishing.

Raven instantly redoubled her efforts to escape. Intruders underwater so soon could only mean one thing. Aqualad and Beastboy. There's no way the T-Sub could've reached them by now. Cursing into her gag, she hoped... no, she prayed... they would be alright. She prayed they would win. Because she could tell now the Kraken's plan. At first she'd misread the runes, thinking he meant to summon another demon from his home-dimension. But now, without the monstrously thick-headed leviathan in her way, she could properly translate them. And a dimensional portal was being opened. Unfortunately, she'd misunderstood the direction.

The Kraken wasn't summoning a demon to Earth.

The Kraken was sending a _half_-demon to her father's dimension. Known by a variety of names, but one Raven had thought suited it perfectly.

Hell.

"I knew I shouldn't have accepted that bet with Beastboy," she muttered into her gag.

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_Anything?_

_Nothing, you?_

_Nothing_, replied Aqualad quietly, eyes wide as he searched for signs of their foe. So far, little had been found.

But all that changed as, without warning, the Kraken dropped down from above them and swatted them both aside with its great tentacles, knocking Beastboy into a stone outcropping and sending Aqualad flying through the water until he managed to bring his unexpected flight to a halt.

_Titans! Go!_ called out Aqualad, the thoughts translating into telepathic speech before he could even think about what he was saying. Kicking his legs he shot forward and slammed his fist into the Kraken's forehead, right between all four of it's glowing red eyes. The water was dark and visibility was limited but he could still make out the shape of the four-armed squid.

"Insufferable pests," roared the Kraken, swatting it's tentacle at Aqualad, who nimbly dodged out of the way, ducking underneath the Kraken and slamming his fist into the back of it's head. He had been right, it seemed. Here, in the water... his element... he had the advantage. He was nearly as strong as the Kraken and had the advantage of being far smaller and faster in the water. The Kraken couldn't hit him, or so he believed.

His belief soon proved to be incorrect.

The Kraken spread out all four of it's tentacles and shot suddenly into the air, launching itself a short distance from Aqualad. The dark-haired Atlantean, thinking it was retreating, shot through the water and charged it, not giving it a chance to run. However, this proved a vast mistake as the Kraken turn to face Aqualad fully in the face, all four of it's reddish eyes glowing like the crimson suns.

Aqualad's eyes opened wide. _Oh no..._

Before Aqualad could dodge aside a bright crimson blast shot from the beast's eyes and slammed into him full in the chest, sending him flying through the water to slam against a nearby outcropping with a little less force than a battering ram. Water resistance had slowed the impact but it had still been powerful enough to leave an Aqualad-shaped mark in the stone. He'd been lucky to have survived. He'd need to avoid a similar blast. And speaking of such, the Kraken was powering a second-such blast, his eyes glowing crimson in a rather distinct manner. Aqualad pushed off from the stone and shot through the water and out of the way. And fortunately too, for the stone behind him had damn near been vaporized by the attack, the fragments of stone drifting down to the ocean floor.

Dodge, duck, dodge, duck. Weaving back and forth Aqualad avoided the blast as the Kraken's eyes followed his movements. Now their roles were reversed, it seemed, and the Kraken had the upper hand. Aqualad couldn't get close enough to land a punch.

_Beastboy!_ he called out, dodging another blast_. I could use some back-up here!_

No reply came.

_Beastboy?! Beastboy!!_

The next blast shot across the water and damn near singed off his hair, but Aqualad dodged to one side and risked a glance over his shoulder at where Beastboy had last been seen. In the gloomy water he could only barely make out...

_... oh no._

Beastboy had reverted to his humanoid form. He'd hit the rock very hard and, unlike Aqualad, he wasn't a very sturdy superhero. He looked badly bruised, and Aqualad didn't see the shallow movement of his chest. He might've drowned. Without gills, he was as vulnerable as any other human to drowning.

_No..._

Aqualad nearly didn't make it past that next blast. The impact had hit him too hard. He'd been friends with Beastboy, after all. Out of all the Titan's and, indeed, all the surface-dwellers he'd ever known he'd been the one closest to him. Even now that he'd joined the Titan's East it wasn't the same. He hadn't known them as long. He hadn't had a chance to connect with them. Beastboy had been his rival... but he'd also been his friend...

... and now he was gone.

_NO!_

Aqualad dipped down low, ducking under an overhanging arch of stone as the Kraken gave pursuit. First blasting away at the arch and then pursuing after Aqualad.

_Fine_, he thought to himself. _Great. I'll take this thing out all by myself. For Raven -and- Beastboy_!

Dodging aside the next blast that superheated the water and shot over his shoulder, Aqualad turned and kicked his legs, speeding towards the startled Kraken, fist upraised...

-

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**Author's Notes:**

Admittedly, I don't fully understand the extent of Raven's powers, and how they're related to the three magic words she speaks (Azerath Metrion Zinthos) but this seems as close an explanation as any. We know she can use her powers without speaking, she's done it before. I also admit I know close to jack about Aqualad or even Aquaman's powers, so I'm taking a few educated guesses concerning their limitations and origins based on what I've seen in the animated series. Hence Aqualad's comment about his family history being 'complicated.' Next time: Can Aqualad battle the Kraken alone? Or is Raven doomed to a very, very ugly family reunion? And what has become of Beastboy?

Seth Turtle: I am glad I could manage to explain it. I try not to make my stories coincide too much, at least not in the same way you do it, but I can't help but reference them like they really happened. And I'd been wanting to do more creatures like the Ravager. Hope you enjoy this story and 'Secret Origins.'

Todd fan: You poor foreigners, unable to see all the beautiful episodes we've seen for JLU and TT. Still, I know how you feel, Canada got a lot of new episodes before we did. Darn Canadians. Ah well, do hope you enjoy the new season.

Yomiori-Wolfdemon: Mass destruction. Pah. I got worse than that. I got Lobo and X23 on my payroll, and the two of them are far more dangerous than any weapons you got. Hehe. I am glad you're enjoying the appearance of the Kraken and yet more references to Raven's still unnamed (though we know darn well who he is) father.

Dragonblond: Human nature. So sue us. I am glad you're enjoying the characterization, however. I'm trying to downplay the silliness from 'Deep Six' with Star and Rae falling hopelessly in love with Aqualad, downplaying it more to just a silly crush. Hope you enjoy and keep reading, you know I'll keep reading your story. Eagerly anticipate your own take on BB and Rae.

x Black tears x: First of all, love the name. Second, fast as I can, promise.

ViciousAssassin: My fanbase must be growing. I feel so loved. Oh don't worry, the Kraken is meant to be plenty evil so I do hope your imagination runs plenty wild. As for predictions, well, let me just say it won't be quite what you expect. Heh. 'course, with me, you already know to expect the unexpected.

Elrohir: That's my thought, and I didn't go too deeply into that but Raven does enjoy nothing better, at least as I see her. She lives for subtle, ironic revenge. As for the rest, well, the ocean ain't big enough for the two of them. Or the Kraken.

Ninjamonkey: Aw come on death is a little extreme, don't you think? Plus Aqualad is cooler than a lot of other Titan-esque heroes we've seen. I rate him up there as the seventh Titan, just behind Terra. He just needs more screentime, really. He should quit East and join the main crew.

Regrem Erutaerc: I work with word, which doesn't always catch such things. I am rather glad you're enjoying the plot though. As for the outcome, well you'll see soon enough.

Dust-in: You're repeating yourself a lot. And this story doesn't have a couple, per se, it's a love-triangle. In that its overly complicated and involves more than just two people. As for the rest, you'll find out soon enough.

Mephisto2022: More fighting to come, believe you me. I am told I am best at action, so that is where I focus my stories generally. The Titans make it easy, since most of the show involves a great deal of combat. And a kid's show, no less. Tsk-tsk.

Staticsponge123: He can talk to Aqualad via telepathy, we know that, but I've also seen plenty of evidence that he can talk in other forms. He did so a lot as an amoeba, which technically doesn't even have a mouth. And yes I have a birthday but it's in September.

Ultimate R-Man: No guarantees, but for my own stories I do tend to use them a lot. They make great powerful, disposable villains, since they're demons and not people, and I can easily insert them into the Titan timeline with little trouble. Maybe another will show up. I am glad you're enjoying my characterization as well.

VeelaChic: He can get jealous rather easily, it seems. I am, in essence, simply expanding upon what happened in 'Deep Six,' but I'm glad you're enjoying it.

DarkKnight92: Well thank you very much for such high praise. I am most unworthy.

Greg867: Crampin' his style? You mean showing him up by being genuinely better? Hehe. Nah I kid. Go Beastboy indeed.


	4. IV

As it turned out, Aqualad's heroism, while giving him a welcome edge against the Kraken, was a little misplaced.

For you see, Beastboy wasn't dead yet.

To understand how he survived one must understand the nature of Beastboy's powers, far simpler than the one-sentence explanation he used when explaining it to others. He did not simply turn into animals and back. Ever since his parents the Logans had saved Beastboy's life with their splicing experiment, his body had undergone a vast change. Every single molecule in his body had become hardwired into his brain, allowing only a single thought to allow for a metamorphosis from one body shape into another. His clothes, specially designed, were made to be absorbed into his body during his transformations, which accounted for how they appeared and disappeared when he changed shape. Only a few limitations kept him from assuming a multitude of near impossible shapes. One, that his organs had to remain more or less as they were, though he was able to shift them around, rearrange them, and even shrink them down to smaller sizes during his changes. Two, shape-shifting into a form other than his original took energy. The longer he stayed in a former, the larger the form was, or the more forms he took the more quickly he would become exhausted and lose consciousness. Nor was he able to assume the form of a humanoid creature beyond his own or that of an ape. He simply wasn't powerful enough. Certainly no where near as powerful as a certain Martian was. Not yet, at least.

However, within these limitations allowed Beastboy a great deal of flexibility and growth for his powers as he grew older and continued to test his limits. His simplest transformation, the first, had been into a mongoose to scare away a snake. But after a trip to the museum he'd learned he could mimic more than just living animals, but dead ones as well, provided he'd seen a realistic image of what the animal looked like. Now the kingdom of the dinosaurs was open to him as well. And more, almost any sort of animal on other planets as well. Like the time he'd visited Tamaran. Or the time he'd shrunk down to the size of an amoeba, which truthfully, even he hadn't been sure he could do until he'd done it himself. And even before then he'd done some experimenting and found out he could, if concentrating hard, merge the characteristics of two or more animals into one. And his powers were growing stronger all the time. Sometimes too strong for him to control, like the time he'd been attacked by Adonis.

Beastboy had indeed slammed into the rock, hard enough to nearly splatter against it as a green indistinct blob, and hard enough to knock him unconscious and revert to his humanoid form. But it wasn't enough to completely shake the fish-like characteristics that had allowed him to survive underwater. Even when he'd assumed the form of a sea mammal, like a dolphin or whale, he kept those gills so he needn't return to the surface every so often for oxygen. Two slits adorned either side of his neck, a pair of gills that allowed him to breath underwater without drowning. His chest was still but his lungs were not being used. A year ago, he wouldn't have been able to perform such a trick as retaining his humanoid form -and- lungs. A year ago, he'd've been dead by now.

Groaning, the green-skinned metamorph lifted his head, clutching his throbbing skull. The attack still had hurt like hell, and he was sore all over. No sign of the Kraken or Aqualad though. Grunting, he pushed himself up and peered around, trying to spot them. But the water was still dark and he had little ability to see in it the way Aqualad did. He was about to shift back into a lantern fish when something caught his eye. Frowning, he kicked his feet awkwardly and swam down to the ocean floor where it was.

He nearly cried out in shock and joy at his discovery.

It was a piece of Raven's swimsuit. She was nearby! She had to have been! Beastboy glanced around, and was rewarded with his search by locating a dark tunnel in the side of the underwater rock formation. There were runes all over the place, none of which looked very friendly. This had to have been it. This had to have been where she was. He kicked his feet, slipping into the form of a dolphin and swam rapidly down the tunnel and into the underground cavern... he could see it now, see where the water turned into underground air. And... there...!

Raven.

He could see her through the distorted surface of the water. She was hanging upside down by some sort of weird kelp-y like stuff. All her dark lavender hair was falling down around her head, and her bathing suit was indeed ripped, though thankfully she was still decent.

He started to surge forward, to get up and save her... but abruptly he stopped, inches away from the surface.

No, he thought. As much as I want this it's not the right thing to do.

With that thought, he transformed into a swordfish for speed and shot through the water, back out the tunnel and towards the Kraken and Aqualad. He had a plan. With a little luck, it might even work.

If not... well...

... he'd worry about that when the time came.

-

-

-

Aqualad bit back a cry of pain as he slammed into a nearby wall. The Kraken was proving to be just as fast as he was underwater, its tentacles moving easily through the water as through air, and all four of them were too much for Aqualad to dodge or fight against. He was starting to get tired already, and he sensed the Kraken had barely broken a sweat.

"Keh keh keh," hissed the Kraken, grabbing a hold of Aqualad's legs with his tentacle and slamming him down against a rocky outcropping. The fragments of rock drifted down as Aqualad was knocked unconscious. He was tough but he sure as hell wasn't invulnerable. The Kraken lifted him up before it's four-eyed gaze.

"I wonder what you'll taste like, Atlantean...?" hissed out the great beast, bearing it's shark-like mouth and slowly moving Aqualad closer towards it.

_HEY!_

The Kraken's head snapped up, and it glanced over it's shoulder just in time to see a green orca (or killer whale) come barreling down towards it and bite down into it's closest tentacle.. HARD. The Kraken gave a roar of agony and dropped Aqualad, lashing out at the orca with it's remaining tentacles. But curiously none of them hit, and when they lifted up a tiny green minnow shot out between them and to safety. It shifted into still a third form, a great green octopus, and though it had no face like the Kraken did, he could have sworn he saw a grin on the creature's face as it beckoned on the great demonic squid with it's tentacle. The Kraken, roaring in rage, lunged forward, but the octopus grabbed a hold of it's tentacles in it's own and spun like a top, hurling the Kraken off into the distance, cursing and screaming in a variety of demonic tongues that, thankfully, Beastboy couldn't understand.

Which was a good thing, because not a single word sounded pleasant.

Beastboy quickly dropped down beside Aqualad, picking him up in his tentacles and gently slapping his cheeks to waken him.

_Aqualad! Aqualad wake up! C'mon I got a plan!_

_What?_ grunted Aqualad as he lifted his head and opened his eyes. Beastboy's attack had given them a few moments but the Kraken would be on its way back in a short while.

_I found Raven. Seriously she's in an underwater cave just a few yards that way_, he said, pointing his tentacle like a finger. Listen I got an idea! I'll hold off the Kraken, you get her to the surface. Get out of here. I'll meet up with you guys in a while.

_What? Are you serious! You can't beat that thing!_

Beastboy didn't reply to that at first. He turned away from Aqualad, staring into the inky depths where the Kraken had gone... and was on it's way back. _I know_, he said at last. _But at least this'll give you and Rae a chance to get out of here. Get the Titans, both teams. Get the T-Subs. Come back and give this thing what for... I'll keep it busy and give you both a chance to escape..._

So saying, Beastboy floated towards the Kraken, ready to do battle. A telepathic voice, however, stopped him.

_Beastboy_.

The green-skinned metamorph glanced over his shoulder at the dark-haired Atlantean.

_I'm sorry. I never wanted to look like a rival to you. And I don't want bad blood between us_, he said, offering his hand. Beastboy, as best he was able in his current form, smiled and offer Aqualad a tentacle, who shook it.

_Go save Raven._

_You got it_, said Aqualad, kicking off and heading to find the cave and tunnel Beastboy had mentioned as he turned to fight the Kraken_. Just don't lose, got it!_

_Don't worry. I'm not the one whose gonna lose_, he said with his typical Beastboy-level confidence.

However, as the Kraken returned into his line of vision and the watery seemed to become deathly cold and dark, Beastboy's confidence began to flag. Still, he pressed on, grimly determined to buy Raven and Aqualad the time they needed.

Shifting into the form of a shark, he shot forward, mouth opened wide as he charged the Kraken.

-

-

-

Raven had just about given up hope. She was all alone, shivering cold and wet in a stinking fish-infested cavern with no magic about to be sent to her dad's home dimension for a very ugly reunion with him, and all because she'd taken a bet with Beastboy. And while most people would say it could not get worse, Raven was the ultimate example of a pessimist. Things could _always_ get worse.

But she was pleasantly delighted to see they could also get better.

And they did get better as Aqualad's head broke the surface of the water.

"Raven!"

"Mawkalakk!" she cried out, her voice muffled by the gag.

He leapt gracefully out of the water, landing on the rune-covered ground and peering up at her, taking in her wounds, her injuries, the tear in her suit (which, to his mind, looked better on her) and in an instant was ready to act.

"Hang on I'll get you down."

Aqualad stretched out his hand, employing a power that he rarely used these days. The manipulation of water. A great geyser of water lifted up from the opening, pouring up like a platform that Aqualad leapt up upon so he was level with raven, grabbing the iron-hard kelp and, with a great heave, tore it in two. He held Raven in his arms as he dropped the two of them down onto the floor of the cavern.

"Mrkfk!" Raven grunted, as he tore away the gag covering her mouth. "What happened? Where's Beastboy?"

"Delaying the Kraken," Aqualad replied, leaping back into the water. He offered hand up to Raven. "Come on we have to get back to the surface."

"But what about Beastboy?" she asked.

"He's holding off the Kraken, he wants us to bring in back-up. Besides you won't be able to help underwater. You'll drown. Now come on let's go."

Raven bit her lip but reluctantly grabbed Aqualad's hand and allowed herself to drop down into the water. Only then did she realize what she was doing and blinked in confusion. "How am I going to get to the surface without a T-Sub?" she asked. "I don't know any magic to allow me to breathe underwater. I was lucky the Kraken wanted me alive down here. Must've..."

"Raven," interrupted Aqualad quietly, his eyes downcast. She abruptly stopped talking.

"I'm sorry but this is all I can think of," he said slowly, his voice soft. "You can slap me later," he added, totally throwing her off. Before Raven could put a protest Aqualad grabbed her in his arms and sealed his lips against hers. Raven, shocked by the sudden move, gave no protest as Aqualad then dropped down into the water, taking her with him.

-

-

-

An underwater reef, darkened by magic.

One demonic squid from a nether dimension with great strength and powerful magic.

One green-skinned metamorph.

Battle was joined.

Beastboy shot forward, clamping down his sharp teeth into the Kraken's tentacle and holding on for all he was worth as the great beast lifted him up and tried to shake him loose. He hung on for dear life, however, knowing the instant he came loose he would be prey for a counterattack.

The Kraken too seemed to realize that Beastboy was not going to let go easily, and slammed him down hard against the ocean floor, forcing him to cry out in pain. The tentacle formerly in his jaws was wrenched free, though the Kraken's thin violet blood spilled into the water. Beastboy had hurt it. It's demonic face on the squid's body did not look the least bit amused. It did not look arrogant, mocking, none of it. There was only rage. It's eyes fairly glowed crimson.

And then Beastboy realized something. They -were- glowing.

The shark shifted into a swordfish and shot through the water, dodging aside the first blast of crimson energy that poured from the Kraken's eyes. The Ravager had made attacks like this, back when the Titans had first been drawn together. Beastboy was not terribly surprised to discover that the Kraken had similar abilities. And that was his advantage, he realized. Maybe he stood half a chance of beating this thing.

However, as another blast slammed into his side and knocked him against a coral reef, Beastboy's confidence dropped again. Still, he grimly clung ton consciousness, even as his skull throbbed painfully from the attack. He'd struck his head, it seemed. Shifting form into that of a cuttlefish, a miniature squid, he shot through a crack and away from the Kraken, forcing it to follow him. The change proved to have a side-benefit, for the pain of having a crushed skull eased when assuming a form with no skeletal structure. Still, it wouldn't last.

"Get out here you insufferable mortal!" roared the Kraken, sliding over the reef, slashing at the rocks with the jagged barbs on it's tentacles, tearing through rock as easily as Beastboy might run his fingers through sand. Beastboy dodged behind another coral formation, vanishing more or less from view in his smaller form. "Get out here so I might devour you and be done with you both!"

_Got to be a weakness to this thing_, he thought to himself. _But what?_

The Ravager had been defeated, yes, but it had taken all the Titans to save the day then. And in the end, it hadn't been brute strength that had defeated the Ravager, but cunning. A rather healthy dose of bug spray directly into it's four-eyed gaze hadn't hurt either. But Beastboy doubted such would work against the Kraken.

_Where a fifty foot fishing pole when you need one?_ he muttered inside of his mind.

Then, as if a lightswitch had been turned, a bright bulb lit up above his head. An idea.

Beastboy shot forward, immediately catching the Kraken's attention. Perfect. That was what he wanted. Just to be safe he suddenly came to an abrupt halt and shifted form into that of a puffer fish, immediately filling up his near-hollow body and 'causing himself to expand like a balloon. The Kraken, unprepared for his halt, slammed fully into him and gave a most satisfying roar as Beastboy's puffer fish needles pierced its black skin, drawing forth yet more of it's sickly violet blood, which oozed through the water like oil.

"You insufferable human!" roared the Kraken, swatting at Beastboy's balloon-like form with it's tentacle. The action rewarded the Kraken with yet another handful of spines piercing its skin but it sent Beastboy flying through the water until he shifted form again, assuming the shape of a great green ray, spreading out his "cloak" to let water resistance slow him down.

He did not need to turn his head in order to know the Kraken was behind him giving hot pursuit, so Beastboy dove, letting the black behemoth fly over his head. It'd be back soon but it bought him a few critical seconds. He dove deeper, zigging and zagging back and forth to throw off his pursuer as he searched the bottom. A blast of crimson energy narrowly missed slicing him in half and instead singed his long green tail as he stifled a groan of pain and kept moving.

_C'mon, c'mon, where is it... where's... there!_

A crevice opened up into the earth, leading still deeper into the ocean and Beastboy dipped down as quickly as he could, coming close to shearing himself against the cliff-like edge of the crevice as he dropped down into the inky blackness. He couldn't see a damn thing, and quickly shifted form again, this time taking on that of a dolphin. Normally he would've preferred a lantern fish but any light would draw the Kraken. He needed to hide for a moment for his plan to work. He needed to catch the thing off guard. And even then, his plan was half-baked at best. No chance it would work.

But at least by now Aqualad and Raven were safe. He hoped.

To his relief, as he ducked down against the rocky wall of the crevice, using his sonar to navigate, the Kraken seemed to be unable to see in the pitch dark waters any better than he could. The opposite could not be said of the green metamorph. The Kraken's crimson eyes were glowing as brightly as car headlights, providing Beastboy an easy target. Far better, his sonar allowed him to conjure a more or less perfect mental image of where the Kraken was and what it was doing. So far, it was waiting. It wanted him to make the first move.

Beastboy waited. The more time he could buy for his friends, the better.

"Keh keh keh... think yourself clever, little green one?" the Kraken hissed in a dark voice. "You are a fool. You are going to die. And so are your companions, the fish-boy and the spawn."

Beastboy stifled a growl. Any sound now might give away his presence. But he hated it when creatures like the Ravager and the Kraken referred to Raven as a spawn. Like she wasn't a person. It ticked him off to high heaven and back.

"You are mistaken. Would you like to know why before you die?"

_Just ignore it_, an inner voice told him_. It sounded curiously like Robin and Cyborg. It's trying to tick you off. Don't let it get to you. Stay focused_.

"Let me take a guess. You told the fish-boy to rescue the spawn while you, the fool, sacrificed yourself nobly to defeat me. No doubt hoping for an easy ticket into the afterlife," hissed the Kraken. It chuckled darkly, bubbles flowing through the water as it shifted, continuing it's search for Beastboy.

Outwardly he was calm, but the Kraken's words shook him to the core. It knew... yet it did not seem worried. Why?

"I needed the spawn for the initial part of the spell, it is true, that is why I captured her… I needed her present as a living component... but now that the fourth stage is completed, I have no need of her," hissed the Kraken, red glowing eyes searching back and forth for signs of Beastboy. "Once I complete the final runes and finish the fifth stage, the nexus will open, and the spawn will be drawn to it no matter where she is. She will return to he who spawned her!"

Beastboy's eyes opened wide, and he stifled a gasp. _That was the creatures plan? They were sending Raven to... to... oh no_.

"All that remains is to take care of you, little nuisance," it hissed. "And once you're gone... I win."

_NO!_

-

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**Author's Notes:**

The explanation for Beastboy's powers, like Aqualad's and Raven's are, as usual, based on best guesses drawn from how they appear in the animated series and what little I know about his comic origins. The episodes referred to are of course 'Transformation', 'Betrothed', 'Crash' and 'Beast Within.' The reference to the shapeshifting Martian was, of course, referring to J'onn J'onez from Justice League, his fellow green-skinned metamorph. And I assure all readers there is a reason Aqualad kissed Raven, which will be explained later. I doubt I would get away with such in the animated series but here, it still fits the rating and the setting. Next time: Beastboy challenges the Kraken to a final showdown of watery warriors. Who will emerge victorious?

Yomiori-Wolfdemon: Aw, but I do so enjoy ending chapters on cliffhangers. Draws in the audience. But I will update soon, and Beastboy's fate will become known. Fret ye not.

Benny2000: Wow, okay… note to self, no more injuries to the green dude. Too big of a following. And following contains some real psychos. Wow. Uh, look! There he is! He's alright now, 'kay?

Elrohir: I am glad you're enjoying the natural conflict between the two boys over Raven, even if perhaps they don't realize it.

Seth Turtle: I do use the website you recommended, thank you very much. And I'm glad someone besides me enjoys Raven's suit getting ripped. Actually I think it's closer to fifty percent, a lot of the animated stuff is new and original, especially some of the villains, and it's more interesting that way.

Dust-In: And I can't stand a story where all the couple does is hug, kiss and say 'I love you' the whole time. Wait until the end, my good friend. Patience will be rewarded. As for that, I'd say… Vash? WTF has Vash got to do with it?

Ultimate R-Man: Of course not. I fear continuity like nobody's business, so it is impossible for me to kill a Titan character. However, I think Jafar said it best when he said "you'd be surprised what you can live through."

Dancingirl3: Soon as possible, dancing girl.

Todd fan: Well you know they would. They fought each other as much as Trident that one episode.

Grey Rain: Wow, such hatred. And here I was hoping to portray him as mildly sympathetic. Okay, lesson for me.

Staticsponge123: Okay that was random. As for Beastboy, he's alive, don't worry. See?

Crazy-partygurl: I always finish what I start. Do enjoy the rest of the story.

Dragonblond: Thank you kindly, that is most informative. Though I too must laugh… Aqualad afraid of fish? Suffering from psychological trouble from being useless and water-bound I can understand. Much obliged, oh wise Dragonblond-sama. Looking forward to your take on BB and Rae in your own story.

ViciousAssassin: I was hoping to lead this into season four, actually, but I'm leaving it ambiguous for now, and perhaps I'll make another story tie in elements of this. Obviously, with Trigon becoming a major Titan baddie in season four, I'll need to tweak my stories so they fit into continuity.

Ray1: 'fraid not. Like it or not, Raven is fitting into the Damsel-in-Distress role in this story. Though she'll be dragged into the role kicking and screaming.

Tickled Pink with Joy: Oh gladly. Nice name… are you related to Happy-Raven, by any chance?


	5. V

A roar split the crevice, and to the surprise of the Kraken... he hadn't been the one to make it. All four of it's red glowing eyes opened wide in shock, and it spun around. The roar had echoed throughout the cavern, it was impossible to tell where it had come from.

"Where are you!" it roared itself. "Where are you hiding!"

And then another sound filled the watery crevice. Not a roar, but a great and powerful noise. A music, almost. Though the Kraken was unable to identify it, any marine biologist on Earth could have told him instantly what it was.

A whale's song.

And then another sensation gripped the Kraken. A sense of foreboding. To it's surprise, it felt that it was being... drawn back... like it was caught in a current. And that sense of foreboding just got a hell of a lot worse. The Kraken turned... to find itself gazing down into the abyss of darkness.

An abyss of darkness lined with seven-inch long, razor sharp teeth.

The great whale that was Beastboy roared and launched itself forward, it's mouth open, sucking in water even as he charged the Kraken, drawing it back with the sheer power involved in opening it's mouth. The Kraken, totally unprepared, flailed it's great tentacles as the green sperm whale that was his opponent lunged forward and sunk it's teeth hard into the Kraken's black skin, digging in. The Kraken let out an ear-piercing screech, paining Beastboy's ears even as the oily, purplish blood of the behemoth burned his mouth. It tasted almost acidic, but he held on, and even bit down more deeply.

The Kraken roared, slapping at Beastboy's head awkwardly with it's barbed tentacles, slashing away at his green skin, but in his greater size the damage was negligible, though it hurt abysmally. He ignored it, biting down the pain and biting down harder on the Kraken, until he nearly split the great beast in half.

Beastboy, however, wasn't prepared for the Kraken's counterattack, and was blasted clean off as the unholy squid shot forth a blast of crimson energy from it's eyes, nearly directly inside of his mouth. Even he couldn't hold on after an attack like that.

"You insufferable fool!" roared the Kraken, taking look at his injuries. The water was fairly thick with his oily blood, and Beastboy idly wondered how much left he could possibly have in his body. Then it swung out it's tentacles and charged Beastboy. He cursed, dodging aside, and lashed out with his sharp teeth again, missing the body and gripping one of the Kraken's tentacles. He yanked hard but failed to tear it from the beast's body, and was rewarded by another energy blast to his side, which hurt like hell.

Beastboy growled darkly and sank lower into the trench, dodging the Kraken's attacks and slipping out of his form for something smaller, that of a dolphin. Maintaining a large form took a lot of energy out of him, he needed to conserve all of it if he was going to win. And he didn't have a choice now. He wasn't letting this unholy son of a sea cow take Raven. Never.

So his first plan, to assume the form of a squid's natural enemy and eat it, was out.

Fortunately, Beastboy had a plan C.

He tended to start with B. It sounded cooler.

Beastboy dove down low, heading towards a small natural cave he'd noticed earlier with his sonic hearing. The Kraken was in hot pursuit, screaming for vengeance, and close on his heels. Perfect. He ducked inside, but this time the Kraken lashed out with it's tentacle and caught him before he could hit, grabbing him around his midsection and hauling him close.

"Insufferable fool! I see now that a quick death is too good for you!" it roared, tightening it's grip, crushing Beastboy in it's tentacled grasp. "If you care so much about the spawn, you can join her!"

Beastboy didn't reply, he just shifted form again. He turned into an eel. The tentacle tightened around him, half expecting a change, but Beastboy had been expecting the Kraken to be expecting his change. And his eel face gave a grin to the Kraken as a tiny spark shot across it's eyes.

The sort of eel Beastboy had transformed into?

Electric eel, of course.

And even the Kraken was not immune to the power of raw electricity being shot throughout it's nervous system. It roared in pain, releasing Beastboy, who shot forward, morphing into a dolphin to slam his hard nose right into the Kraken's head, right between the eyes. It roared angrily, pain and rage blinding it as it lashed out, striking at the green dolphin, as Beastboy dodged aside. The blow meant for him struck rock instead, knocking down part of the wall. The great beast, cheated of it's prize, lashed out again at Beastboy, who nimbly dodged aside again. And again, the Kraken struck rock.

Were it less rage-filled at that particular moment, focused on it's prey and little else, the Kraken might have noticed how Beastboy had been cleverly leading it into this ambush. Had been doing his utmost to enrage the monster to the point where it struck anything green, and where Beastboy had cleverly stood directly in front of the cavern walls. Specifically, at key weak points he'd noticed. And now that a number of them had been shattered like so much sandstone...

The walls started to rumble, and the whole underwater cave shook threateningly. At first the Kraken didn't notice, busy trying to slay the insufferable Beastboy. But a great chunk of rock suddenly flew past his gaze and he realized the precariousness of the situation.

"What? Whaa.. no! No this cannot be!"

And Beastboy shot past the Kraken towards the cave's mouth, shifting into a swordfish for maximum speed. _It can, and is_, he thought_. Take this, you bastard_.

The Kraken let loose one last ear-piercing roar as the entire cavern collapsed like a series of dominos, allowing tons of rock to come crashing down and finish off the great beast. And Beastboy alone managed to slip out of the cave, though even he was rewarded with a few bruises from falling boulders he hadn't been able to fully dodge in time, and one particularily bad one had clipped his tail.

Still, as he glanced back at the cave. He had made it out, and the Kraken hadn't.

Winner... Beastboy.

-

-

-

Many miles from the island of Mofire, still further away from the city of Jump there was a small rocky island by the name of Blackrock. So aptly named because it was just that, a stretch of black semi-volcanic rocks that jutted out of the sea into a large formation. It was considerably smaller than Mofire, and had no real landmarks atop of it. The closest thing it had to a sign of human touch was a crudely drawn sentence in English that said for visitors not to harm a certain giant moth larva that no longer inhabited the island. Nobody bothered with it. It wasn't exactly a tourist trap.

But it was land, and it was somewhere to sit down and rest, and that was exactly what Aqualad and Raven were now doing.

Raven's face was a bright crimson, so much so that she was on the verge of confusing passing craft with a signal light. And the source of her discomfort was sitting a respectful distance away, trying to raise Titan's East on his communicator. So far below the surface, Aqualad had been forced to breath for her, in a sense. His body's gills allowed him to draw oxygen from seawater, after all. He simply passed it to her, via the mouth. Hence the kissing. And of course Aqualad, ever the gentleman, had offered her the opportunity to repay him with a slap. She'd turned it down. She'd known the situation had called for it, he'd only done what he could to get her back to the surface, and she was grateful.

But the kiss...

Raven turned her head so Aqualad couldn't see her expression and blanched. Honestly, that was horrible. His lips were cold and clammy and wet, which wasn't surprising given his heritage. But, honestly...!

Aqualad kissed like a fish!

"Good news!" said the dark-haired Atlantean, pocketing his communicator. "Titan's East are on their way. They've already contacted the main Titans, they should be here about the same time."

"Good," she managed to breath out.

"Listen you gonna be alright here?" asked Aqualad. "BB's been gone a long time, I should go after him. Now that you're safe we can organize a better attack for this Kraken fellow."

"I'll be fine," she said tonelessly. She'd rather have gone with Aqualad to save Beastboy but had to concede her powers and her condition made her helpless fighting an underwater opponent. There was nothing she could do now.

"Alright," he said, crouching and preparing to leap down off the rocks and back into the water. "I'll be back in... hey... what's that?"

Raven glanced down, following his line of view, and spotted it instantly. After all, purple and green were both very bright colors, especially against a dark ocean backdrop. The sun was starting to set, and they stood on the shadowy side of Blackrock isle. But the figure was visible in seconds. And identified in far less.

The mystic Raven inhaled sharply, a hand over her mouth. "Oh no, Beastboy..."

Aqualad wasted no time, diving into the water and picking up his friendly rival, helping to carry him up onto the rocks and gently place him on the ground so they could both check his condition. His uniform was torn and ripped in a multitude of places, and underneath that all of his green skin was covered in darker green bruises. He looked like a great bloody mess, and Raven had only seen him like this once before. After his confrontation with the were-beast Adonis.

"Beastboy... you damn fool," she muttered, placing her hands over his chest and closing her eyes to concentrate. A soft bluish-white glow engulfed her fingertips, then spread out into Beastboy. At once, his wounds closed, his body repaired itself, and in moments, he was in perfect health. Or at least, she hoped so. She'd never tried to heal the sheer amount of damage before that Beastboy had suffered from. She hoped it was enough.

Beastboy's eyes fluttered, and he peered up at the now-relieved faces of Raven and Aqualad.

"I won..." he managed to croak out, before darkness overtook his gaze again and he blacked out, exhausted but thankfully no longer hurt.

-

-

-

Beastboy sat now, on a nearby rock, having recovered enough of his strength to sit upright and breath easily. Raven had done a remarkable job of healing his wounds in the battle with the Kraken. He was grateful. It'd been a stupid thing for him to do, try to take on the Kraken alone. Luck had been a prevailing factor that allowed him to survive. And even Aqualad's congratulations hadn't helped.

They were saying good-bye now to Aqualad, who planned to meet up with Titan's East and explain the situation was contained, then head back with them to Steel City.

And, as Beastboy glanced over towards his teammate and his rival, he spotted them sharing a hug, and hung his head in pity. He should've known. Letting Aqualad rescue Raven had been a mistake on his part. He should've done it himself. But then they might've failed...

Beastboy growled darkly, his feelings for Raven conflicting with his honest desire to see her safe and happy. Ultimately, the second pair won out, just as they had below the surface of the water. If she was happier with someone else, if someone else could make her smile...

... he'd just have to learn to accept that.

-

-

-

Unfortunately, had Beastboy been closer, he might've heard what Aqualad and Raven were saying. As it was, he was jumping to conclusions again. Part of his impulsive nature.

Raven had been thanking Aqualad for aiding them, offering him a hug as a sign of gratitude, not because she had any feelings for the Atlantean. Nor did he have any, it seemed for her, beyond good friendship. They were simply too… unalike. And beyond that, he knew now how Beastboy felt. And he prided himself on never coming between two people with an obvious bond like they shared.

So Aqualad gave Raven a friendly hug, bid her farewell, and dove back into the cool waters, kicking his legs to launch himself forward and using a little telepathy to locate some friendly fish, asking for signs of the T-Sub.

And Raven gently wrapped her arms around her shivering cold shoulders. Still in her torn bathing suit, her cloak still left back on Mofire island, and soaking wet, she was freezing. So it was she, with great reluctance, made her way back to Beastboy to wait until the other Titans arrived and she could return to Titan's tower and change.

Until then… she had to grit her teeth and swallow her pride.

Without so much as a word Raven sat down beside Beastboy and gently took one of his hands, guiding his arm so it looped about her shoulders, then rested her head beside his.

"Don't get any ideas," she said in a dangerous tone. "I'm cold, that's all."

Beastboy reluctantly nodded, but tightened his grip a little anyway. If this was as close as he could ever get to Raven, he might as well make the most of it. An awkward silence followed, until Beastboy broke it.

"Raven, listen I… I'm sorry."

Now -that- was unexpected. She lifted her head. "For what?"

"Everything," he replied with a sigh. "Everything that happened today was all my fault. That stupid bet, convincing you to come out here, letting that Kraken take you and nearly get you killed."

_Was he serious_? "C'mon Beastboy that wasn't your fault… any of it. And when it came down to it you and Aqualad…"

He stiffened at the name.

"… saved me. I'm grateful."

"I still shouldn't have made that bet with you," he said morosely. "It's what started this whole mess."

"Why did you make that bet, anyway?" she asked.

"I wanted to see you smile."

"Why?"

"Because I saw how sad you were after Malchior had left," said Beastboy. "I saw how you wanted to be able to smile, to laugh, to have a chance to do things like a normal girl. So I promised myself, then and there… I'd help you if I could. Even if I had to drag you kicking and screaming," he added, with just a hint of mischief.

Silence reigned for a short while then, as Beastboy and Raven both pondered the statement. It was true, realized Raven. Beastboy had always been trying to help her feel normal. And, in a sense, she welcomed it. Because of her heritage she'd always felt distance from normal people, always felt she had to hide away because she was 'dark' and 'creepy.' But Beastboy was her almost polar opposite. He kept her stable, he kept her sane in some ways. He reminded her that, regardless of who she'd been born, it was her choices that shaped who she was. That no matter how creepy she was, she didn't need to lock herself away inside of her room forever.

"But I guess… I guess you don't need me anymore," said Beastboy, turning his head away. His eyes were moist but he stubbornly refused to cry. "Aqualad seems to make you smile a lot more easily than I do. You must like being around him so I'll… I'll… I just stop bothering you, I guess," he said.

Raven blinked.

And in that, instant, understood exactly what was going on. Why Beastboy was acting so strange, why Aqualad had even become his rival in the first place. It wasn't simply a matter of pride to him. He saw him as a threat… to her. To them.

And she very nearly laughed aloud at his folly. Honestly, how thick-headed can he be.

Raven chose her next actions carefully.

Gently, she wrapped her arms around Beastboy's waist, giving him a warm, heartfelt hug the likes of which he hadn't received since the night Malchior had been banished back into the book. No mistaking this gesture for seeking simple warmth. This was coming from the heart, and Beastboy was doubly shocked. After the way he'd been treated after that night, he'd assumed that, no matter who'd been outside the door of Raven's room she would've hugged them. And it only happened to be him out of pure luck. But now…

… maybe he'd jumped to conclusions again.

"Raven…?" he asked hesitantly.

"Thank you," she whispered softly. "For everything. For saving my life and, more importantly, saving my soul."

They were like that for a very long time then, taking comfort in one another's arms, just enjoying the closeness of one another. And though neither yet fully understood the bond that had brought them together, they could both feel it. And feel how strong it was.

Raven was the first to end their embrace, feeling much warmer now that she'd dried off a little. She stepped away from Beastboy, peering out at the horizon, waiting for the T-Sub and the Titans.

"Just don't bug me too much, or I'll re-introduce you to Anger personally… got it?" she said over her shoulder, her words devoid of malice. Both of them knew it was an empty threat. And so Beastboy didn't reply. He simply nodded. And smiled. And though her back was to Beastboy, Raven allowed a tiny smile to touch her lips as well. Despite all the pain and trouble today had brought, with their trip to the beach and Aqualad, with the Kraken and Beastboy's heroic battle, despite all of the suffering some good had come out of it.

_I'm glad I took that bet, she thought to herself._

-

-

-

It was dark by the time the Titans finally returned home to their T-shaped tower. After Raven had bid them all a good-night and Beastboy had escorted her back to her room, helping carry her cloak and other things. And she'd smiled and closed the door, and they'd both gone their separate ways, thinking of one another.

And down the hallway, three pairs of eyes had watched in disbelief. Well, at least two of them. The third pair was glinting brightly in a mischievous-like glee.

"I believe now is the time to "pay up"?" asked Starfire innocently, holding out her hand.

Reluctantly, Cyborg and Robin dug into their pockets and pulled out a crisp five dollar bill each, placing them in Starfire's hand. After all, neither had thought Beastboy would be intact by the end of the day, they'd both placed their bets accordingly. And Starfire had bet against them, and won. The Tamaranian Princess giggled as she floated down the hall towards her own room to place her newly acquired wealth away.

And night descended on Titan's Tower, ending an eventful but not fruitless day.

-

-

-

**Author's Notes:**

Blackrock island, though named by me, was the same island where Starfire left behind Silkie in 'Can I Keep Him?' I intend to reference it more in future stories.

Todd Fan: Glad you enjoyed that, I tried to be as accurate as I could.

Ray1: A little profane but it works for me. Hope you enjoyed the ending.

Seth Turtle: An interesting suggestion, and it does seem to work in certain instances. Much obliged. I agree, BB's powers in the show tend to be… er… changeable. But so are most of the Titans, based on situation to situation. Still, it -is- a kid's show and a cartoon.

DarkKnight92: Glad you've enjoyed the story and my previous works.

Yomiori-Wolfdemon: Silly BB. I do hope you enjoyed the ending, I did my best to make it meaningful while still sticking to oh-so-feared continuity.

Ultimate R-Man: No doubt you already figured out what it was for, I didn't exactly try to misdirect there. Glad you're enjoying the story. I agree, depends on the show situation, but it's a kid's show and a cartoon, so we can accept it, right? It's just enjoyable to watch.

VeelaChic: Certainly.

Scathac's Warrior: Well it ain't over yet, and it is now. Still don't think it's horrible? I sure do. Oh, and to comment on your profile, Raven -is- apparently somewhat telepathic (see Haunted) and draws her last name of Roth from Arella Roth, her mother. But she has no real first name apart from Raven.

Benny2000: Rumble! I agree, I sometimes root for the underdog too. And I try to portray Beastboy as accurately as possible. But if he's gonna goof off I'm gonna knock him around a bit. It's how it works.

Elrohir: I enjoyed that line myself. Generally, when I write Aqualad, I ask myself "what would I say in that situation?" Blue skin? Scales, you mean perhaps? Heh. As you can see, no reunion here. Fearful continuity. Maybe another story.

Dust-In: Little point now, since as you can see this is the end. No sign of the Titans East, but they wouldn't be much help anyway. I suppose I can maybe see a similarity between Vash and Beastboy. Maybe. But I rarely enjoy crossovers that have very little in common, and Trigun and Teen Titans have close to nothing in common.

Staticsponge123: Nice review… bye!

MetalDragon1: Well there's the final chapter, hope you enjoyed the whole thing.

ViciousAssassin: Well seems you were mistaken, but I was tempted to write it that way too. At least about the Kraken. Seems you were right, however, on who won out in the end. Lucky BB.


End file.
